Pages

Share This

Friday, August 8, 2014

This week is the newest of the Royal
Spyness series by Rhys Bowen. You can read the reviews I have done of
the previous books: #7 Heirs and Graces (click here), #6 The Twelve Clues of Christmas (click here,) #5 Naughty in Nice (click here,) #4 Royal Blood (click here,) and I was tickled to get an author interview with Ms. Bowen (click here.)

Author: Rhys Bowen

Copyright: August 2014 (Berkley) 304 pgs

Series: 8th in Royal Spyness Mystery series

Sensuality: kissing

Mystery Sub-genre: Historical Mystery

Main Character: 22 year old Lady Georgiana Rannoch, 35th in line for the throne

Setting: 1933, Ocean Liner and Hollywood CA

Obtained Through: Publisher for honest review

Georgie's mother Claire makes a surprise appearance at Kingsdowne Place where Georgie has been staying (following the events in Heirs and Graces). Her mother wants company in going to Reno for a quickie divorce from a long-ago hitching in which the other party doesn't believe in divorce. Claire is approaching marrying her rich paramor Max and wants nothing to stand in the way. Georgie jumps at the opportunity.

While aboard the five day ocean cruise, movie studio head Cy Goldman insists on casting Claire in his next picture and Claire decides to stop in Reno for the divorce on the way to Hollywood. While on board the ship, there is a robbery of an expensive ruby and Georgie runs into her kinda-sorta fiance Darcy trying to capture the "gentleman thief."

Hollywood sees Georgie getting attention from famous movie actors like sexy Craig Hart and scoundrel Charlie Chaplin. When everybody is invited to Cy's lavish castle in the hills for the weekend, nobody expects murder among the antiques and wild exotic animals roaming the grounds.

Georgie is slowly becoming more worldly, and even speaking her mind occasionally. Darcy O'Mara isn't developed much further, and seems a bit flat and just a usual fixture filling his duty of dangling the carrot of something more for Georgie. Claire Daniels is completely self-centered and mostly ignores Georgie, until Georgie gets male attention...then she is caty to her own daughter. Stella Brightwell, old show business acquaintance of Claire's and former silent film star is Cy's mistress. Stella had more to her than first assumed. Cy Goldman, head of Golden Studios is rendered as nearly larger than life and with cash to burn.

The change of venue from England or Europe to the cruise and then Hollywood had mixed results. It lost some of its charm, but picked up some old Hollywood nostalgia...so fans may have a hard time with the change. Apparently Cy's large monstrosity of a castle is based on the Hearst castle, and Randolph Hearst's Cosmopolitan Productions inspired Cy Goldman and his movie studio for the second half of this novel.

I hate to admit this since I really enjoy this series, but it is getting formulaic. Each story has: Georgie given an opportunity that will provide food and a place to live so she doesn't starve; Darcy somehow shows up on assignment but never has much quality time for Georgie and thinks he must wait to give her a proper life...no matter if she is going without food in the meantime; Belinda, her friend will somehow miralously wrangle an invitation to the gravy train; and Georgie's mother is always so self absorbed that Georgie scrounging for money or lodging doesn't even register. I do have to admit that Georgie is finally standing up to the impossible maid, Queenie - at least a little.

The killer confrontation had dire consequences that produced some nail-biting excitement, nice job with that. The wrap-up leaves us with some faint hope for Georgie, again, and with a vague notion that Darcy will show up eventually.

For the ardent fan, this is a good addition to the series. The American lifestyle produces some humor for the rigidly raised royal girl. Georgie gets to flex her sleuthing muscles since she is the only one rising to the challenge.

Rating: Good - A fun read with minor flaws. If you are a fan then you don't want to miss ongoing developments. If you are new to the series, this isn't the best book to start with. Best to begin with earlier books, or at the beginning.

Subscribe To This Blog

Follow by Email

Support this blog

I do not get money for any review or service I provide, so I have incorporated some ads to help support my efforts. I am including this donation button. If you find my reviews, author interviews & posts, and various extras useful, please consider giving a buck or two. Thank you!

A warm welcome to each and every guest, grab a cup of your favorite hot beverage and join me. This is a new blog for mystery lovers and fellow aspiring authors.

Monday's: musings on the mystery genre and writing craft and occasionally a progress report on the novel I am writing, some author interviews, book giveaways or blog tours depending on what I scare up.

Thursday's: Book review. "The writer reads in order to write." I do have a habit of finding already established series and starting with book one. So maybe you will be introduced to a new series in my reviews of the occasional older book. I recently added a recipe or video on Thursday's as well for added enjoyment.

CrimeSpace Badge

Resort To Murder Mysteries

Nailed: Resort to Murder Mystery II

Julienne is snow bound in the middle of the Rocky Mountains with a killer striking at will.

SPIKED: Resort to Murder III

Julienne must solve the murder of a private investigator found with her business card on his dead body.

Resort to Murder Bundle

Books 1-3 of this exciting cozy mystery series.

The Little Wine Guide

Buy CD

PRIVACY STATEMENT

Your privacy is important to us. To better protect your privacy, we provide this notice explaining our online information practices.

We do not share personal information with third-parties nor do we store information we collect about your visits to this blog for use other than what BLOGGER employs as the platform and host of this blog or STATCOUNTER uses to note visits to this blog and its pages.

Google Adsense and the DoubleClick DART Cookie: Google, as a third party advertisement vendor, uses cookies to serve ads on this site. The use of DART cookies by Google enables them to serve adverts to visitors that are based on their visits to this blog and well as other sites on the internet.

To opt out of DART cookies, you may visit the Google ad and content network privacy policy at the following url http://www.google.com/privacy_ads.html. Tracking of users through the DART cookie mechanisms are subject to Google's own privacy policies.

If you participate in a giveaway and provide your email address for the contest, it is used only for the contest by the owner of this blog. But, the email is open to the public to see and I am not responsible for an other usage due to public display. We are not responsible for the republishing of content found on this blog on other web sites or media without our permission. This privacy policy is subject to change without notice.

Blogged.com

I’m a Colorado gal who loves the mountains and low bug population but hates the snow and cold. I have been a book worm from second grade and my first venture into writing stories was fourth grade.
I love pretty much all mysteries and those with a paranormal angle in particular. I look forward to sharing my adventures in reading with you.